Damaged graves of German World War I soldiers are seen in a cemetery at Saint Etiennes Arnes, eastern France, July 8, 2012. ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO

The centennial of the "war to end all wars" is just a year away, and its repercussions still influence European thinking to this day. Jean-Claude Juncker, the Luxembourg prime minister and long-standing advocate for the European Union, made news this week when he warned that the rise of nationalism across the Continent was threatening peace and stability in much the same way as in the years leading to the outbreak of the Great War in 1914.

"I am chilled by the realization of how similar circumstances in Europe in 2013 are to those of 100 years ago," Juncker said.

Animosity among European countries about the allocation of blame for the causes – and responsibility for the consequences – of the current financial meltdown have stirred up deep-seated resentments. As Greece teeters on the edge of economic oblivion, highly emotive accusations are angrily lobbed at Germans, who are critical of the role the Greeks allegedly played in their own downfall. The recent Italian elections also featured a full portion of Germany-bashing, among other theatrics. With the current economic turmoil in Europe the worst in over 60 years, tempers on all sides are frayed.

Surprisingly, considering the massive loss of life that then was only months away, Juncker argues that there were many Europeans in 1913 who believed that there could never be another war on the Continent. They based this excessively optimistic belief on the false sense of security created by high levels of economic integration, making war inconceivable. This belief that naked self-interest would forever preserve the peace is labeled by Juncker as simply "complacency." He fears his fellow Europeans are not taking the recent upsurge in nationalism seriously, for similar reasons.

At its heart, a federal EU offers the promise of institutions that can diffuse tension and avoid the outbreak of war on a continent that has suffered greatly from in the past. To see the EU potentially undermined by infighting and bickering is disheartening to its more fervent supporters.

Germany has always been at the heart of European integration, before and after 1951, when the Treaty of Paris launched what is today the EU. Interestingly, many Germans are now expressing doubts about the euro currency and the mutual benefits of the union. Polls indicate that a quarter of Germans support pulling out of the common currency.

As continued austerity takes a toll on many across Europe, it is uncomfortable to recall that these same concerns underlay the tense state of affairs that existed when Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in 1914, which precipitated the war. Some will claim that the world is a much different place today than it was almost 100 years ago, but it is important to remember that even a place as civilized and prosperous as modern Europe can see the fog of war readily descend. Bosnia and Kosovo are two clear examples from the 1990s of how superficially small conflicts can still lead to large-scale bloodshed and atrocities.

Downgraded to "World War I" after the outbreak of hostilities in Europe in 1939, the Great War of 1914-18 is largely ignored in America as a subject of historical and national reflection. Fair enough, perhaps, since America joined the fighting in its final months and, as a result, was spared the same level of jaw-dropping causalities that accrued to all other participants. But America's limited role in this great calamity has meant that its perspective on subsequent events has always remained slightly out of tune with the perspective of those countries that suffered immensely.

America prefers Manichean conflicts, where good and evil are clearly on display. In that regard, American prefer the sequel, World War II, to the original, in much the same way as the bombastic "Rambo: First Blood Part II" has proven more appealing to movie-goers than the ambivalent morality at the heart of "First Blood."

The horrors of trench warfare and the sufferings shouldered by enlisted men in the field, as well as their families back home, set the stage for more social-oriented public policy in the inter-war years, as well as the failures in diplomacy that allowed war to break out again in 1939. While Americans enjoyed a straightforward narrative during World War II – the hero riding to rescue those in need, as well as an unprecedented economic boom in the years that followed, Europeans saw the return of war through the lens of the tremendous sufferings that were endured only 20 years early. When peace came again in 1945, instead of an American boom time, Europeans were left with broken economies and the bitter realities of austerity.

When Juncker warned last week, "The demons have not gone away – they're only sleeping," he was intentionally striking at a nerve that remains raw for many Europeans to this day.

Just as the demons simply went to sleep after the immense violence and bloodshed of the 1914-18 war, only to awaken a few years later, the concern today is simply stated. Should the complex and costly institutions headquartered in Brussels ultimately fail, then it is not immediately clear what would prevent a slide back into the envy, confrontation and aggression that plagued the Continent throughout the first half of the 20th century.

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